BANGALORE, Jan 21 (Reuters) - Inspire Pharmaceuticals Inc
ISPH.O said its experimental drug, Prolacria, for the
treatment of dry eye disease failed to meet the main goal in a
late-stage trial, sending the company's shares down as much as
20 percent.

Wedbush Morgan Securities analyst Liana Moussatos, who was
expecting the drug to fail in the late-stage trial based on
mixed clinical data in the past, thinks the Prolacria program
is "dead".

The drug, which has already gone through four previous
late-stage trials, was being studied in the latest trial under
a special protocol assessment agreement with the U.S. Food and
Drug Administration.

The next catalyst for the stock will be the mid-stage trial
results of Inspire's drug AzaSite to treat blepharitis, or
inflammation of the eyelid margin, in the second quarter,
Moussatos said.

With the Prolacria data out of the way, Leerink Swann
analyst Joseph Schwartz sees a number catalysts that could
drive the stock higher later in the year, including a possible
European partnership for the company's experimental late-stage
cystic fibrosis drug, denufosol.
Continuación...